200 Bricker Hall
April 5, 2006
3:00-5:00pm
MINUTES
Present
Professors: Lora Gingerich Dobos, Raymond Noe, Margaret McMahon, Raymond Noe (Chair), Electra Paskett, Nancy Reynolds, W. Randy Smith (Vice Chair), Harald Vaessin, George Valco, Brian Winer
Student Members: Jane Evans (Council of Graduate Students); Kevin Freeman (Inter-Professional Council), and Elaine Yeh (Undergraduate Student Government)
Guests: Brad Myers, University Registrar; Professor Elliot Slotnick, Associate Dean, Graduate School; Professor Stephen Mangum, Senior Associate Dean, Fisher College of Business; Professor Charles Quinn, Jr., Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures; Professor Thomas Gregoire, College of Social Work; and Professor Ashley Schafer, Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF MARCH 1, 2006
Evans moved approval of the Minutes of the Meeting of March 1, 2006, Reynolds seconded the motion, and it carried with one abstention.
COMMENTS FROM THE CHAIR – PROFESSOR RAYMOND A. NOE
• There were no comments.
COMMENTS FROM THE VICE CHAIR – PROFESSOR W. RANDY SMITH
• the proposal for an undergraduate minor in public health, first discussed by Council in September 2005, will be back on the agenda at a Spring Quarter 2006 meeting for action.
• Smith has been informed by the Director of the Center for Automotive Research, that changes are being made to its Charter and Pattern of Administration. The College Dean, to whom the Center reports, supports the changes as does the Center’s advisory committee.
PROPOSAL TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE UNDERGRADUATE MAJOR IN TRANSPORTATION AND LOGISTICS TO LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT, FISHER COLLEGE OF BUSINESS – PROFESSORS RAYMOND A. NOE, AND W. RANDY SMITH, SUBCOMMITTEE D
Noe reviewed the proposal. The name Logistics Management would include “transportation” as a subset. The College had received the appropriate concurrences. Subcommittee D recommended approval.
• Was concurrence received from the Department of Industrial, Welding, and Systems Engineering, College of Engineering (IWSE)?
PROFESSOR STEPHEN MANGUM, SENIOR ASSOCIATE DEAN, FISHER COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
Mangum commented that the proposal had been straightforward. There was less focus now on transportation, and changing the name would eliminate confusion for students about the term, which is now out of date. Transportation would now be a subset of the broader field of logistics.
The new name had the support of related colleges: Social and Behavioral Sciences; Human Ecology; and Engineering.
• Had there been formal concurrence from the Department of IWSE? It was not included in the packet of materials for this meeting. Mangum thought that there had been, but he would follow up with the College of Engineering.
Subcommittee D moved approval, Paskett seconded the motion contingent upon a formal concurrence from the College of Engineering, and it carried unanimously. Smith will follow up and report to Council.
PROPOSAL FOR A REVISION TO THE JAPANESE MAJOR, DEPARTMENT OF EAST ASIAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES – PROFESSORS RAYMOND A. NOE AND W. RANDY SMITH, SUBCOMMITTEE D
Smith summarized the proposal. The revision would clarify the two paths to the Japanese major: the traditional path, and the intensive Summer program. Instead of completing specified “years”, students would now work through “levels” at their own pace. The revision had the support of the Dean, College of Humanities, and the Colleges of Arts and Sciences’ Committee on Curriculum and Instruction. Subcommittee D recommended approval.
• Council members believed that the request for a revision was appropriate, but the presentation was confusing. The cover letter from the Department stated that all courses were Japanese, but some Chinese courses were listed.
• The numbering system was not clear. What do the decimals mean? What do levels mean?
GUEST: PROFESSOR CHARLES QUINN, JR., DEPARTMENT OF EAST ASIAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES
Professor Quinn gave a brief description of the revised program.
• Explain the decimals. Quinn clarified the numbering. He said that all courses were listed under an umbrella course, followed by those with two-digit postscripts that indicated either the academic year or the Summer program. The first level was numbered 101 followed by 101.01, which indicated the academic year and 101.02 which indicated the Summer program. Brad Myers, University Registrar, commented that this numbering method is common in the languages. The second level started with 104.
• What do levels mean? Specification of “years” would be changed to “levels” to permit students to proceed at a variable rate. If they wished to complete the program faster they would take the intensive Summer track.
• The cover letter from the Department was confusing. Are Chinese courses offered? Yes, they should be included in this request. They have been offered for 8-10 years. Students can take them in the Summer.
• Do students get more credit for taking the Summer courses? The student gets 15 credits for taking the Summer work. They take three hours per day, five days a week. If they have to leave the program earlier, they will get credit for the work they have completed, so students can attend at their own pace.
Subcommittee D moved approval, Dobos seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously.
PROPOSAL TO DELIVER A MASTER OF SOCIAL WORK IN COLLABORATION WITH WRIGHT STATE UNIVERSITY – PROFESSORS RAYMOND A. NOE AND W. RANDY SMITH, SUBCOMMITTEE D
Smith gave an overview of the proposal. The Ohio State University has linked with Wright State University to offer, for a 5-year time frame, a Master of Social Work using faculty from both institutions. Students would apply through Ohio State. The courses in the first year would be offered by faculty from Wright State, and the courses in the last year would be offered by faculty here. The combined program has the support of faculty in both institutions.
Professor Thomas Gregoire, Associate Dean, College of Social Work had met with Professor Elliot Slotnick, Associate Dean, of the Graduate School, and Smith, about the proposal and Slotnick had worked with the Regents’ Advisory Committee on Graduate Study to ensure support for this initiative by other Ohio institutions. Subcommittee D recommended approval.
GUESTS: PROFESSORS ELLIOT SLOTNICK, ASSOCIATE DEAN, GRADUATE SCHOOL, AND PROFESSOR THOMAS GREGOIRE, ASSOCIATE DEAN, COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK
• Is OSU doing much collaborative work in other areas? Slotnick said that as an institution we do not do this a lot. The College of Social Work shares a program with the OSU-Mansfield Campus.
• It seems there is potential for the program to work or fail. Is that a concern? No. This plan has been carefully worked out by both institutions and it is something that they want. The Board of Regents likes to see such collaboration. Wright State felt the need to develop a social work program. The University of Cincinnati had expressed interest in the Dayton region for its program, but Ohio State was willing to work in a collaborative way and Wright State was happy to work with us. Its faculty is qualified to teach this program, and we have the appropriate syllabi. The arrangement with Wright State will be for five years. We will mentor them and it will give us a good alumni base.
• What is the student perspective? Each student will have two advisors; one who signs off on their program, and one who is their academic advisor. Since the curriculum is fairly prescribed, students will not need much advising.
• Will there be a phase-in/ phase-out plan? That has not been discussed yet. Council felt this should be spelled out. Gregoire said that could be done. Slotnick said that the accrediting body pretty much determines a step by step process, as does the State.
Subcommittee D moved approval, Reynolds seconded the motion, and it carried with 10 in favor and one abstention.
PROPOSAL TO REQUEST AN ADDITIONAL DEGREE DESIGNATION FOR THE MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE: MASTER OF ARCHITECTURAL STUDIES – PROFESSOR RAYMOND A. NOE AND W. RANDY SMITH, SUBCOMMITTEE D
Smith gave an overview of the proposal. The degree designation would help bring greater recognition to the one-year non-accredited program in the Master of Architecture program, a program that has had declining enrollment in the past few years. Subcommittee D recommended approval.
GUESTS: PROFESSORS ELLIOT SLOTNICK, ASSOCIATE DEAN, GRADUATE SCHOOL, AND ASHLEY SCHAFER, AUSTIN E. KNOWLTON SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
Slotnick said that a Master’s program normally has to go through various state requirements in order to be established or changed, but since this was a program that already existed as a tagged degree, with a name change that was appropriate for the program, he was able to go through a simpler process.
Schafer explained that the Architecture Section offers two graduate degree tracks under the Master of Architecture. The first is a professional degree, and the second is the one year non-accredited program. It is the one year program that is experiencing a declining enrollment. She felt that changing the designation to a Master of Architectural Studies would bring greater recognition to the program and attract more students. In addition, the designation would imply a sub-disciplinary path focused on research, one that is suited to professionals in design or for those who want to study other areas in more depth.
Stated simply: there are now two paths to the Master of Architecture degree and this proposal is to allow one path to be given another title to more accurately reflect what it is doing, to better advertise it to students; and to have the potential for further development/revision.
• Will someone who already has a Master of Architecture be able to enroll in this program? Yes.
• What are your plans for building the program? Schafer said that she would like to see the program evolve to include areas that are growing nationally such as environmental ecology, and she would like to make the program flexible to accommodate shifts that occur over the years.
• How many hours does it take to complete the one year non-accredited track? Forty five credit hours. What are some of the requirements? Schafer said she would like to require an exit review, and she would like to change it from an M.A. to an M.S. program. Slotnick commented that any such substantive changes would have to go through him. Schafer said that the general degree requires a studio requirement and three electives every quarter for all three quarters. She would like to change the studio requirement to an intensive writing requirement or a digital requirement.
Slotnick explained that the other path was toward a professional degree, a three-year degree where a graduate gets licensed. The one-year Masters does not get licensed. Schafer named other institutions that offer it. She said that they could possibly offer combined programs, such as History of Art, with digital fabrications, or they could offer specialized studios.
Council members expressed concern that this sounded more like a new degree and less and less like an existing degree. They were uncomfortable fast tracking this request when others had to go through the whole process. They cautioned that this track exists and requirements for this degree are fixed. Adding an exit review and specialization studios sounds like a new degree program.
• Is this option for undergraduates or someone who already has a professional degree? It is designed for those who have their degree.
• Will a specialization involve changing something? No. Schafer said it works within the existing degree program.
Subcommittee D moved approval, Yeh seconded the motion.
Council Discussion:
Council members indicated that they wanted to see the details of the curriculum for the two existing paths to the degree, to understand better the distinction between the existing program and the new one. Smith suggested that if Council does approve this naming for one track, then at a minimum it should ask to review the status of that track on a regular basis to determine the extent of “new program” development.
Brad Myers, University Registrar, said that this is a post-certification track. He explained that there are certification and non-certification degrees as opposed to different ways to do a Masters. The School is asking for formal recognition of a non-certification track, where a student can already enroll today. Council cannot say they do not like how it exists can they?
It was decided to return to the proposal at the next Council meeting. Smith said that he would meet with Slotnick and Schafer. He will ask that the full curriculum for each of the two current paths be sent to him prior to the meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:00pm.
Respectfully submitted,
W. Randy Smith
Joyce Rankin
